Bill Lockwood, ComputerTalk publisher, sits down with Vikas Desai, VP of BestRx Pharmacy Software, and Stephen Barnes, director of sales and marketing for BestRx, to hear how the company is providing pharmacies with the tools that can increase profitability, and their take on cloud-hosted solutions.
ComputerTalk: Let’s start by hearing what you see as the advantages of cloud-hosted solutions?
Vikas Desai: The main advantage of a cloud-hosted solution is the freedom to work from anywhere. There are many functions within a pharmacy that can be performed remotely. When your data is no longer tied to a physical server in the pharmacy, it allows your employees to perform those functions off-site. This not only improves efficiency, but it can also increase employee satisfaction. We launched a cloud-hosted version of BestRx in December of 2022, and the response from pharmacies has been incredible.
Cloud-hosted solutions also make it easier to manage multiple pharmacies. For example, with BestRx you can link your stores and manage all your locations from a single device. Plus, when your data is hosted in the cloud, you don’t need to rely on clunky VPNs [virtual private networks] to establish connectivity. Your data is easily accessible, regardless of what’s happening on-site at your pharmacy.
Finally, enhanced data security is another big advantage of using cloud-hosted solutions. BestRx uses Microsoft Azure servers, which boast robust encryption and security protocols across the board, to house our clients’ data. We are also able to provide pharmacies with automatic real-time backups. Not only does this remove a task from your workload, but since the data is no longer being stored at your pharmacy, it is safe — even during unforeseen events that may compromise your physical store.
CT: Getting prescriptions in and out of the filling queue as accurately and quickly as possible is important. What have you done to improve workflow efficiency?
Desai: Independent pharmacies are all unique in the way they operate. Unlike chain pharmacies, one set workflow doesn’t always work for all pharmacies. That is why we designed BestRx to include highly customizable workflow settings. That way, each pharmacy can set up their own custom queues, enable specific workflow triggers, and dictate instances when authorization or administrative approval is needed.
With BestRx, pharmacies are also able to automate many tasks, including processing refills, patient notifications, insurance billing, label printing, PDMP [prescription drug monitoring program] reporting and verification, payment reconciliation, and return-to-stock functions.
Using technology to improve efficiency and automate repetitive tasks reduces the likelihood of errors and allows the pharmacy to focus on caring for patients and growing their business.
CT: Pharmacies today need robust, easy-to-use tools to help manage vital business operations quickly and efficiently. What do you offer to ease the burden on business owners?
Stephen Barnes: One of the most important aspects of a pharmacy’s operations is their claims process. However, some pharmacies still don’t track their reimbursements and reconcile their claims. In fact, PBMs [pharmacy benefit managers] count on those pharmacies to not keep track of the money they are owed, so they themselves can keep it and increase their own profitability. That’s why BestRx offers a reconciliation feature that helps pharmacy owners track their claims, including whether they’ve been properly paid or not.
Tracking acquisition costs is another critical piece of a pharmacy’s operational and financial performance. That’s why it’s important to ensure pricing information is up to date, which can be done easily, using automatic EDI [electronic data interchange] functionality. Otherwise, the pharmacy may believe they are losing money on a claim when they aren’t — or worse, that they’ve made money when they haven’t. While pharmacies can’t control reimbursement, there are two aspects of their operations that they have complete control over — inventory and payroll.
Both can have a significant impact on their business. When it comes to inventory, it’s important for owners to remember that extra or unnecessary products on their shelf are essentially just money that’s collecting dust. To help pharmacies manage their inventory levels, BestRx offers multiple inventory reports that can be used to adjust their inventory levels when needed, including the quantities on hand and reorder points.
From a staffing perspective, BestRx’s Time Clock feature enables pharmacy owners to easily track employee shift activity, as well as pay rates, PTO, overtime, and holiday pay. Owners can also use Time Clock reports to properly account for employee payroll.
CT: I think you will agree that multistore ownership is one way that can keep an independent competitive. How is your software designed to help pharmacy owners manage multiple locations?
Barnes: We talked about our cloud-hosted system earlier, which is a great way to manage multiple locations. In fact, we have one owner with over 15 locations that can all be accessed from the same laptop. In addition to our cloud-hosted software, we also offer two web-based solutions: Central Verification and Central Reporting. These features provide owners with other ways to access their BestRx system and perform certain tasks while off-site.
Central Verification, also known as telepharmacy, allows a pharmacist to verify prescriptions for one or multiple stores from anywhere, using our convenient web portal. They just need to have access to a web browser, which could even be from their phone or tablet. The portal enables pharmacies to offer employees greater flexibility between their locations and a more balanced workload, without having to subscribe to an expensive third-party service.
Central Reporting is also available through the same web portal and provides owners with convenient access to a variety of reports for individual stores, or aggregated reports across all their stores. That way they can easily obtain a bird’s-eye view of everything happening or use customizable filters to narrow down the data to obtain store-specific results.
An independent pharmacy owner’s job is never complete, but that doesn’t mean they have to be at the pharmacy to get things done. Using these types of remote tools, BestRx enables multistore owners to manage all of their locations easily and efficiently, no matter where they are.
CT: Now let’s focus on the patient. How is your software designed to increase patient engagement and loyalty?
Barnes: Independent pharmacies are known for their ability to develop strong relationships with their patients in ways that chains do not. However, patient engagement is no longer built on face-to-face interactions within the walls of your pharmacy alone. It’s important for stores to connect with patients digitally as well, and BestRx is proud to offer pharmacies innovative tools to make that happen. This includes a variety of automated text and email alerts that are available through our Messaging Interface. Using electronic communication, pharmacies can keep patients updated on the status of their prescriptions and send personalized birthday and welcome messages as well.
Another exciting way BestRx pharmacies can increase their patient engagement is through our new Your Local Pharmacy app. Your Local Pharmacy allows patients to manage their prescriptions and communicate with their pharmacy from a compatible mobile device or computer. As we continue to make enhancements to the app, patients will also be able to make payments and schedule appointments through Your Local Pharmacy.
Our point-of-sale software, BestPOS, also includes tools to help pharmacies build customer engagement and loyalty, the first being the ability to create customized sales promotions for specific products or across an entire department. Sales promotions are an easy way to promote your OTC [over-the-counter] items and attract new customers to your store. Pharmacies can also encourage repeat business with BestPOS’s customizable loyalty program.
CT: What would you describe as best practices for pharmacy profitability moving forward?
Desai: The days of simply filling prescriptions to keep your business afloat are gone. Now, the best thing a pharmacy can do, from a profitability standpoint, is to embrace technology, diversify their business, and establish multiple revenue streams.
They can add revenue by offering OTC items, as well as billable clinical services like point-of-care testing, vaccines, and MTM [medication therapy management] services. Participating in 340B programs, supporting long-term care facilities, and offering mail order are also great options for pharmacies. Not only will these supplemental products and services help patients stay well, they also encourage repeat business for your business.
When considering new services, it’s important for pharmacies to evaluate what their competitors are doing — or more importantly, are not doing. That way, they can identify gaps they can fill and differentiate themselves in the process. Marketing these services to the community is also important, as they are an effective way to bring new customers in.
Lastly, pharmacies must embrace technology to reduce errors and become more efficient. Too often pharmacies are worried about the up-front costs but do not consider the substantial benefits that technology can provide. Take our NightTech feature, for example. It works behind the scenes, automatically moving prescriptions in the pharmacy’s refill queue through the fulfillment process overnight. That way the scripts are ready to be filled by the time the pharmacy opens the next morning. Through time-saving features and our advanced cloud-hosted solutions, BestRx helps pharmacies gain more time back in the day to care for patients. CT